Looming changes to bin collections will not mean that people have opted for “slim bins” will be charged for switching to bigger options.

This month, beige bin collections for cardboard and paper are set to be slashed from every two weeks to every four weeks.

But questions have been raised about how this will affect people who already opted for smaller “slim bins” for their cardboard and paper waste and will now have to wait longer for collections.

Addressing a town hall meeting Cllr Toby Hewitt, of Astley Bridge, said: “Can the executive cabinet member tell us if those members of the public who have already been enticed to have a slimmed down beige bin, no doubt under an understanding that they were perhaps doing their part or doing the right thing will have to pay for a replacement normal sized bin now that their capacity for household recycling will be effectively cut down to a quarter of what the standard used to be and find they can no longer cope with that reduced capacity?”

Questions were raised at Bolton Town Hall (Image: Newsquest)

Cutting beige bin collections from two weeks to four weeks is one of a raft of cost cutting measures agreed as part of Bolton Council's most recent budget.

This will come into effect from Monday July 15 this year. 

But speaking at a full meeting of Bolton Council, Cllr Hewitt said that people who had opted for the slim bins should not be charged for "doing what they believed to be the right thing” if they now wish to switch to bigger bins.

He also said that reducing collections by half meant that people would be less likely to want to use slim bins in future.

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But in response council cabinet member for the environment Cllr Richard Silvester said that people with slim bins would be able to get new bigger bins without being charged.

He said: “No, if a resident presently has a 140 litre slim beige bin for paper and cardboard recycling, and if they wish to swap their 140 litre slim beige bin for a replacement larger size 240 litre beige bin they will not have to pay any charge or fee at all.

“It will be free and there has never been any proposal or intention to make a charge or a fee to do this.”

He added that there were no proposals or intentions to make changes to “any other bin colour or type.”